Could It Be Any Harder
by Chibi Shamps
Summary: Heero left Usagi and broke her heart. The next time they meet she has changed but is it for the better or for the worse? Is she a friend or an enemy? The lady or the tiger? Warning: This is an AU fic, very twisted and confusing plot. Minor revisions done.
1. Promises Are Made To Be Broken

Could It Be Any Harder  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own these characters.  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Chapter 1: Promises Are Made To Be Broken  
  
Usagi stared at him in disbelief as she desperately tried to hold back her tears. "Hee-kun, you can't be serious!" She was standing in Heero's room while he packed his bag.  
  
"Usagi, please understand," Heero said pausing for a moment in his packing. He knew he was hurting her and he hated himself for it.  
  
"You called me Usagi," she whispered, her chest tightening painfully. "Why, Hee-kun?" she asked, her tears flowing freely now.   
  
"I must. It's my job to protect the colonies," Heero replied. He continued packing his belongings.  
  
"There are others who will protect the colonies!" Usagi protested. "You don't have to do it anymore. You've done your job. Heero, onegai!"  
  
"Usa-chan, you know as well as I do that they need the Gundams for this and if I don't pilot Wing who will?"  
  
"They can find somebody else! Four Gundams should be enough. They don't need you!" Usagi reasoned.  
  
"I'm sorry, Usa-chan. I have to go," Heero said as he finished packing up his belongings and lifted up his bag.  
  
"But you promised!" Usagi cried as she flung herself at him. "You promised me, Heero!"  
  
*Flashback*  
  
It was Saturday night, Usagi and Heero were sitting on a couch in the living room. Usagi laid her head on Heero's lap and Heero was gently stroking her hair. The television was playing some cheesy old film but neither of them paid any attention to it.  
  
"Hee-kun?" Usagi said suddenly.  
  
"Hmm?" Heero continued stroking his girlfriend's hair. Sometimes he wondered how he could be so lucky to be loved by somebody who was as nice and caring as her.  
  
"I want you to promise me something," Usagi stated. She sat up and looked straight into his warm prussian blue eyes which were cold and emotionless not long ago when she first met him.  
  
"What is it, Usa-chan?" He hugged her small body close to him and felt her snuggling on his chest.  
  
"Promise that you'll never leave me," Usagi said. She hugged him tighter as if he was going to disappear if she let go.  
  
Heero heard the desperate plea in her voice and hugged her back just as tightly but not tight enough to hurt her. "I would never leave you voluntarily, Usa-chan. You mean too much to me. Aishiteru. Don't you ever forget that."  
  
Usagi smiled. "Aishiteru, Hee-koi. Itsumademo." She turned her head slightly and gave him a chaste kiss on the lips.  
  
*End Flashback*  
  
Heero gently removed her arms from his waist. "Promises are made to be broken," he stated in his monotone.  
  
Usagi looked at him stunned. "You can't mean that, Hee-kun."  
  
Heero walked towards the door with his bag slung over his shoulder. His hand reached for the door handle and stopped. "Find someone else who can make you happy, Usagi. Sayonara." With that he opened the door and walked away without looking back.  
  
Usagi fell on the floor sobbing. "Heero," she whispered. "I don't want anybody else. I only want you. Aishiteru."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
*6 months later*  
  
Heero sat on the living room in Quatre's mansion. He opened his e-mail to check for missions but found nothing.  
  
"Hee-chan! Save me!"  
  
Heero looked up from his laptop screen and saw Duo running into the living room and dived behind him. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the braided teen. "What did you do to Wufei?" he asked.  
  
"It's worse than Wu-man!" Duo replied still cowering behind Heero.  
  
"DUO! OMAE O KOROSU!" Quatre's voice shouted. A second later, the blonde Arabian stalked into the room, his face flushed with anger. Behind him was Trowa whose face was expressionless but his visible emerald eye glittered dangerously with a promise of a slow and painful death for the braided boy. Both of their clothes looked disheveled and their hair messy.  
  
"What happened?" Heero asked, curious as to what could make the gentle Quatre and the normally calm Trowa so furious at their fellow pilot.  
  
"He," Quatre gritted out, "barged in on Trowa and I with all of the Maguanacs and most of the staff member pointing their weapons at us! If that wasn't enough, they all saw us naked!"  
  
"I said I'm sorry. I just heard someone shouting in there and I thought you're in trouble or something. I honestly didn't know you two were making out!" Duo blurted out while still hiding behind Heero.  
  
Heero stared at the two lovers. "You two were making out in the office after last night?"  
  
Quatre and Trowa suddenly found something interesting on the floor and refused to look at Heero in the eye.  
  
"Well, well, well, isn't that cute?" a new voice said.  
  
The four Gundam pilots whirled around to the direction of the voice with their guns pointing at the intruder.  
  
The figure was sitting on the windowsill. The black bodysuit was tight enough to make it clear to the Gundam boys that it was a female. She also had a black mask covering her face. The fact that none of them noticed her opening the window or coming anywhere near them spoke highly of her skills.  
  
"Who are you and who do you work for?" Heero asked pointing his gun directly at her head.  
  
The girl chuckled. "Wouldn't you like to know, Hee-kun?"  
  
Heero remained unfazed. "Who are you?"  
  
The girl chuckled again and removed her mask. Blonde locks spilled onto her shoulders and stopped an inch past them. Her cerulean orbs bored a hole into Heero's own prussian blue.  
  
**End Chap 1**  
  
Japanese translations:  
  
Onegai - please  
  
Aishiteru - I love you (deeply)  
  
-koi - short for koibito which translate to lover  
  
Itsumademo - forever  
  
Sayonara - goodbye (never to meet again)  
  
Omae o korosu - I'll kill you  
  
AN: Three months! *ducks under the flying utensils* Sorry, sorry. I really didn't mean not to update for that long but I have a good reason...really *sweat drops nervously*. I went on a looooooooooong holiday so I didn't get a chance to write anything. When I returned to school I was swamped by school assignments since it's my last year of highschool. So I'm really sorry about that.  
  
Anyway inspiration struck me and made me write this teaser. If you like it then I'll continue otherwise I'll remove this and work on my long neglected fics especially Wild Kitten. 


	2. Painful Reunion

Could It Be Any Harder  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own the characters  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Chapter 2: Painful Reunion  
  
Heero dropped his gun in shock. His face paled visibly but he caught himself and controlled his features back to his normal expressionless mask. But it was too late because his comrades noticed his face and stared at him as if he had grown two heads. One thought ran through their minds, /Heero actually _dropped_ his gun in shock? We're doomed!/  
  
"What are you doing here, Usagi?" Heero asked, bending over and retrieving his gun, but he never took his eyes off her.  
  
Usagi smirked before replying in a monotone that rivaled Heero's. "I'm sent here by OZ to kill the Gundam pilots. You know what? I think I'll kill your friends first one by one before I kill you." She smiled but it was a different smile. Heero remembered her smile used to be able to cheer and warm everyone who saw it but now her smile was cold and demeaning.  
  
"Nani?" was all Heero could say. His mouth was dry and his throat constricted. Although Heero's face remained blank, his heart was pounding in his chest. His brain was still reeling from her statement.   
  
But Usagi wasted no time talking. She pulled out her gun and fired at Duo. Luckily it only managed to graze his arm as he dodged it by reflex from his training.  
  
Trowa and Quatre managed to get over their shock and started firing at the girl. Heero still hadn't move from his position. His gun was in his hand but he didn't aim it. The gunshot noise was enough to snap him out of his stupor and he aimed the gun at Usagi but hesitated when he was about to pull the trigger.  
  
Usagi nimbly dodged all of the bullets with ease. The small movement made by the hesitation was not lost to the blonde girl who smirked.  
  
"What's the matter, Hee-kun? Can't shoot me?" she taunted. She was still dodging the bullets without breaking a sweat.  
  
Heero held out his free hand. "Stop."  
  
Trowa, Quatre and Duo stared at their leader. "Heero, are you nuts? She tried to kill us! She tried to kill me!" Duo exclaimed. Then his eyes lighted up in realisation. "Heero? Do you know her?"  
  
Heero ignored the braided boy, gazing intently at Usagi's smirking face. "Why, Usa-chan?"  
  
Usagi's face twisted into a scowl. "You have no right to call me that anymore! As for why, it's just like you said. I must."  
  
Heero flinched at her statement. "No, Usa...Usagi. You don't have to do this. Please."  
  
Usagi opened her mouth to reply but at that time the door burst open. The four pilots snapped their heads towards the door. Wufei entered with the Maguanacs following close behind. All of them had their weapons out.  
  
"What happened here? I heard gun shots," Wufei demanded.  
  
Heero turned his attention back to Usagi but found she had disappeared through the window. He continued staring at the spot where she once was, not noticing everybody's attention towards him. He clenched his hands tightly and felt his fingernails digging painfully through his skin.  
  
"Heero?"  
  
Heero snapped his head towards the source of the voice and found Quatre staring at him in concern. He also noticed everyone's attention on him but he didn't say anything to acknowledge them. He spun on his heel and pushed past his comrades and the Maguanacs but a hand stopped him.  
  
Heero didn't even look at the owner of the hand before saying, "Let go."  
  
"Heero, who was she?" Duo asked.  
  
"None of your business, Maxwell," Heero replied coldly and tried to remove his hand from Duo's grasp but Duo tightened his hand around Heero's. "If you don't let go, omae o korosu."  
  
"I'll let you go when you tell us who she is," Duo replied back seriously. "She came into the mansion without any of us noticing, started shooting at us, easily dodged the bullets we threw at her and acted like she knows you. So who was she, Heero?"  
  
Heero was silent for a long while. "She _was_ my girlfriend," he replied with the emphasis on was. He wrenched his arm from Duo's grasp and stalked out the door without anyone else stopping him. They were still in shock at his statement.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Heero walked out of the mansion and went for a walk. He needed to think. He sat on the bench in the park and closed his eyes. His thoughts were troubled. /Usa-chan/ he thought sadly. /No, she's the enemy now. Enemies must be killed/. His chest tightened painfully at that thought.  
  
"Heero."  
  
*End Chap 2*  
  
Japanese translations:  
  
Nani - what  
  
AN: Well, I'm glad you all like my new fic. Hopefully, I'll be able to update once a week if there's no trouble with my schoolwork.  
  
Replies to reviews:  
  
'Moon Dreamer', 'kake', 'keri carlson', 'angel', 'kimeno-pebols', 'AMYANGEL', 'MarsMoonStar' - Thank you all! I'm happy that you like the new fic and I hope the new chap is satisfactory.  
  
'Sam369' - I hope this is fast enough for you. Thanks for reviewing.  
  
'sailorruss' - Sorry if the chapter is too short. I'll try to make the chapters longer but I doubt that I could manage it since I'm really busy with school.  
  
'Pixi' - *laughs nervously* Sorry. I really didn't mean to leave it that long but I have a writer's block for my other fics.  
  
'starfury3000' - I hope this chapter answered your question ^_^  
  
'spacecase' - He..he..he..I have a few more surprises up my sleeve.  
  
'Shannan' - *gulps* Ack! I'm not sure if there's anything worse than Quatre's zero look unless it's Heero after somebody broke his precious laptop. Now that is scary.  
  
'Cristina' - *hungs head in shame* I know. It's bad of me for not updating for three months but I hope this makes up for it *gives the puppy dog look*. 


	3. Regrets And Forgiveness

Could It Be Any Harder  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own characters  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Chapter 3: Regrets And Forgiveness  
  
His eyes snapped opened at the sound of his name. He turned his head and saw Usagi sitting next to him. His first instinct was to pull out his gun and shoot her but he stopped. He didn't know why he didn't just kill her on the spot. /I must be going soft/.  
  
"Heero, I just want to talk," Usagi said softly. She reached out to touch his face but caught herself in time and she dropped her hand into her lap.  
  
"What's there to talk about?" Heero replied harshly. He regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth.  
  
Usagi stiffened when she heard his reply. "You're right. There's nothing to talk about." She stood up and was about to walk away when Heero called out.  
  
"Usa...Usagi, matte."  
  
She turned to look at him but made no other move.  
  
Heero looked into her eyes which were once sparkling with happiness but now were as emotionless as his own. He inwardly winced as he realised he was the cause of it. "Why are you doing this?"  
  
"Why? Why?!" Usagi screamed. "You should know why! You left me, Heero! You left me alone when you promised you wouldn't leave me!" Heero saw the tears gathering in her eyes but they didn't fall. "Do you know how much it hurts when somebody you love with all your heart abandons you, Heero? Do you? Answer me, goddammit!"  
  
Each word she said struck him to the core of his being. He could feel the pain and hurt radiating off her. He stood up and hugged her tightly.  
  
That broke the dam. Her tears fell freely upon her face. She clutched Heero's tank top and cried into his chest. Heero didn't know what else to do so he just held her and stroked her hair, trying to soothe the distressed girl.  
  
"I'm sorry, Usa-chan," Heero whispered into her ear. "I never wanted to hurt you. I'm not worthy of your love. You deserved better than a killer."  
  
Usagi looked up from his chest and pushed him away forcefully. "You baka!" she cried and punched him in the stomach.  
  
Heero doubled over in pain from the force of the blow. /When the hell did she get so strong?/ But before he could react, his lips were captured by hers. His hands encircled her waist and he kissed back with all the passion he had for her. Their tongues sparred and fought for dominance over the other. When they parted, both panted heavily.  
  
"Hee-kun no baka. I don't want anyone else but you. I don't care if you killed. You did that because you had to. I've done things which I'm not so proud of either when I went looking for you."  
  
"What did you do, Usa-chan? Tell me, onegai," Heero asked gently. He guided her to the bench and they sat on it, pulling Usagi into his embrace.  
  
"When you left, I was heartbroken and I tried to kill myself." Heero felt himself tense visibly after the words left her mouth. "But you can see I'm alive. After two weeks, I went searching for you but I couldn't find a trace of you anywhere. I thought you were dead. So then I went to Earth and stumbled upon a man called J."  
  
"You met Dr. J?" Heero asked suddenly.  
  
"Hai. He was the one that trained me."  
  
"Trained you?"  
  
"Hai. You didn't think I became this good on my own, did you? Anyway, he trained me for a while and then I left when I had learnt all I could. Two months ago, I joined OZ."  
  
"Why would you do that?"  
  
"Because I heard they had found the Gundam pilots, and I joined in hope that I could see you again and that you might not be dead," she said softly. She avoided his gaze as she spoke.  
  
He tilted up her face so he could look into her cerulean blue orbs. They shimmered with pain and unshed tears. He kissed her lips softly, trying to rid her of her pain. Pain that he had caused her, he realised. He was such a fool to think he could protect her by leaving. He wouldn't make the same mistake again.  
  
They held each other for what seemed like eternity, content with simply being near the other. Heero broke away reluctantly, knowing they couldn't stay like that forever. He knew that the others were probably worried about him and they would also have many questions for him. "Usa-chan, where are you staying?"  
  
Usagi looked thoughtful for a moment. "I need to go back to the OZ base."  
  
"What?! Why?!"  
  
"I have to, Hee-kun. They knew the Gundam pilots identities. That's how I knew where you lived. They're planning something but I don't know what and I intend to find out."  
  
"It's too dangerous for you," he reasoned. He spoke calmly despite the fear he felt in letting her go again.  
  
Usagi pulled back slightly and brushed her lips against him. "Don't worry, Hee-kun. I can take care of myself. I'm not the helpless girl I once was. You don't need to protect me anymore. I must tell you the truth, Hee-kun," she spoke suddenly, looking very serious.  
  
"Nani?"  
  
"I've done bad things in the time we've been apart. I'm not proud of them and I haven't forgiven myself for doing those things. I hoped that if you forgave me, then I might be able to forgive myself one day," she finished. She averted her eyes, looking everywhere except his face.  
  
"Usa-chan, look at me," Heero said softly.  
  
Usagi brought her gaze towards his face but still refused to meet his eyes.  
  
He touched her face gently. Her skin felt so soft against his fingertips as he rubbed her cheek. "Usa-chan, I did things that were unforgiveable but you forgave me. Please tell me what happened and just know that I could never hate you. Aishiteru."  
  
Usagi gave him a small smile. "Arigato, Hee-kun. It means a lot to me." She continued on a little hesitantly. "I have hurt many innocent people but I have not killed directly."  
  
Heero did not fail to catch the double meaning in her words. "I understand, Usa-chan, and there is nothing to forgive. I'm glad you didn't kill like I did. The guilt would be heavy to bear."  
  
"Arigato, Hee-kun," she hugged him gratefully. She, then, released him and stood up. "I must be going now, Hee-kun. Don't worry, I'll be fine and I'll see you again soon," she added when she saw his reluctance to let her go back. "Please tell your friends I am sorry for my actions."  
  
"I will, Usa-chan. How can I contact you?"  
  
Usagi shook her head. "Iie, Hee-kun. I will contact you instead." With that she disappeared into the trees.  
  
*End Chap 3*  
  
Japanese translation:  
  
Matte - wait  
  
Onegai - please  
  
Hai - yes  
  
Nani - what  
  
Aishiteru - I love you (deeply)  
  
Arigato - thanks  
  
Iie - no  
  
AN: There goes another chapter. Wheee! Thank you for the massive amount of reviews!! I'm really happy now ^_^   
  
Replies to reviews:  
  
'spacecase' - Is this chapter to your liking too?  
  
'LovelyAngel' - I wish it was longer too but with the amount of assignments and homework I have I don't think I could write longer chapters. Sorry.  
  
'obsessed' - to be notified for updates, you can either leave your e-mail address in your review or you can join my Yahoo Group (address stated in AN).  
  
'key' - ^_^ Go Usa, go Usa!  
  
'sailorruss' - You actually want me to take my time *looks astonished*. If I take my time, there would be no update for ages. So I will just stay with shorter chapters which gets updated regularly. I hope you don't mind.  
  
'Silver Twilight Blood' - I'm glad you like my idea.  
  
'sapphireskies' - Sorry, I didn't mean to leave them on cliffhangers, they just turned out that way. AT least this chapter is not on a cliffhanger.  
  
'Jupiter Angel' - *sweatdrops* Er, sorry?  
  
'MarsMoonStar' - *Beams* Thank you!  
  
'CrystalMoon' - Usa is a devil with an angel's face. She is not as sweet and innocent as she seems to be.  
  
'Falconess' - Thank you. It's hard comig up with an original plot since there are so many Heero/Usa fics out there.  
  
'lady love' - I hope this is fast enough for you.  
  
'Moon Dreamer' - He he he. I have a few more suprises I just can't wait to spring up on you.  
  
'kimeno-pebols' - Sore wa himitsu desu (It's a secret!). You just have to wait and find out like the others.  
  
'oracale' - Glad you liked it ^_^ 


	4. Tell Or Not To Tell

Could It Be Any Harder  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own characters  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Chapter 4: Tell Or Not To Tell  
  
Duo jumped up when he heard the door being opened. "Heero, where have you been?" he cried out, rushing to his best friend's side. "Everybody has been so worried about you."  
  
"Hn," Heero grunted and pushed past Duo, only to find his way blocked by Trowa, Wufei and Quatre. He mentally sighed, he didn't want to tell them about his encounter with Usagi but it seemed that he was going to have to.  
  
"Heero, do you mind telling us what that was all about?" Trowa asked quietly but his tone brooked no argument.  
  
"Hn."  
  
"Dammit, Yuy! Tell us who she was or..." Wufei left his sentence hanging.  
  
"Or what?" Heero asked coldly. His prussian blue orbs flashed dangerously.  
  
"Guys, please don't fight," Quatre pleaded, trying to avert the incoming violence. "Now, Heero, could you please tell us what you meant by that girl being your girlfriend?"  
  
"I meant exactly what I said."  
  
"Care to give us more information?" Duo persisted. Heero could see the frustration on the American's face.  
  
"No," Heero replied bluntly. "It's none of your business, Maxwell."  
  
"None of my business?! None of my business?! Of course it's my freaking business. That girl was going to kill us! I know you don't care about your life, Yuy, but the rest of us do!" The violet eyed youth was breathing heavily, not from exertion, but from trying to reign in his anger.  
  
The rest of the pilots except Heero looked at him in stunned disbelief. They never thought the normally cheerful boy could get that angry. Heero wasn't surprised by his sudden burst of anger because they had been roommates and had been through a lot together. The last time he saw Duo this angry was when he had been reckless about completing a mission, nearly killing himself. The American wouldn't calm down and gave him a long rant about valuing his life more.  
  
Heero sighed again, visibly this time, and agreed when he realised they wouldn't leave him alone until he did what they asked. "Her name is Usagi Tsukino. She is my girlfriend. We met when I landed in front of her house unconscious after I finished a solo mission. That was two years ago. She nursed me back to health and I left, but after the war was over I returned to her place and moved in with her. I left her six months ago when Quatre contacted me. During that six months, she trained with Dr. J and joined the newly formed OZ."  
  
The other pilots were stunned by his story. Trowa then seemed to realise something. "Heero, did you say that she _is_ your girlfriend?"  
  
/Damn! Trust Trowa to pick that up,/ Heero mentally cursed himself for letting that slip. "Hn."  
  
Seeing that Heero would offer no more information on the subject, Quatre decided to ask something else. "Heero, do you know how she found out about us?"  
  
"OZ knows our identities and where we live."  
  
"What?! How did they find out?" Duo said in shock. "We've been very careful about this."  
  
"Are you sure, Heero?" Trowa asked, his single eye stared hard at Heero.  
  
"Hn. We need to contact the Doctors and see if they have any information on how OZ managed to find out."  
  
"Very well, I'll do that now," Quatre offered and walked into his office with Trowa following closely behind.  
  
Heero sat down on the couch and picked up his laptop, ignoring the last two pilots in the room with him. He hacked into the OZ mainframe to see if he could find any information. While he was there he looked up Usagi's profile.  
  
STATS  
  
Name: Usagi Tsukino  
  
Age: 16  
  
Height: 5 2"  
  
Hair: Blonde  
  
Eyes: Blue  
  
Skills: Stealth, demolition, hand to hand combat, agility  
  
Additional information: Extremely skilled and can accomplish any mission perfectly. Unwilling to kill directly preferring to incapacitate instead.  
  
Heero frowned at the stats he had found. /How could she be this skilled in six months? What kind of training had she gone through with J?/ He snapped out of his thoughts when he heard Quatre and Trowa entering the room. He looked up from his laptop. "What did they say?"  
  
"They have no idea what or who caused the leak but they want the source eliminated quickly," Quatre reported. Like the others, he was not pleased with what he found.  
  
/Kuso! That makes things difficult. Maybe I'll just wait until Usa-chan contacts me then see if she has any information about this spy,/ Heero thought. He softened slightly at the thought of the blonde haired girl that he loved so much.  
  
"What do you suggest we do now, Heero?" Quatre asked worriedly.  
  
"Hn. We'll move out now and find another safehouse. Only us five." Inside he was a bit worried. Would his girlfriend be able to find him?  
  
"I'll make the arrangements," Quatre quickly said and hurried out. Heero watched the Arabian closely, curious as to what was making him nervous. However, he quickly dismissed the thought as he had more important matters to attend to.  
  
*End Chap 4*  
  
Japanese translations:  
  
Kuso - damn  
  
AN: Gee, I didn't think that this fic would be popular. This was just something I started up on a whim but I'm glad you all liked it. Thank you for those who reviewed. I appreciate every single comment.  
  
Replies to reviews:  
  
'Jupiter Angel' - Wow! Thank you! Who's the first one?  
  
'spacecase' - Yay! Glad you liked the previous chapter. This one too?  
  
'key' - I have twists like you wouldn't believe *sprouts devil tail and horns*  
  
'Usagi Serenity Yui Cosmos' - Thanks! Glad you liked it. Hope you enjoyed this one too.  
  
'Mystic Angel' - *sweatdops* Um, here you go?  
  
'Sammie' - Thank you. I hope you enjoyed this chapter too.  
  
'Moon Dreamer' - Sure I'll e-mail it to you. I'll be glad to have new members. ^_^  
  
'DaughterofDeath' - Hope you like this chap!  
  
'sailorruss' - *sighs in relief*   
  
'MarsMoonStar' - *sweatdrops* Thank you?  
  
'Lady E' - Don't stop writing? I'll probably collapse from the lack of food and rest then there won't be any more updates.   
  
'Lady Espelle' - Thanks!!  
  
'Pyro-Girl' - Glad you're enjoying this fic as much as I do.  
  
'oracale' - He..he..he..I can't wait to spring it on you too. Duo is just so cute.  
  
'kimeno-pebols' - I hope this is soon enough for you. 


	5. Mask Underneath A Mask

Could It Be Any Harder  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own these characters  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Chapter 5: Mask Underneath A Mask  
  
By dawn the pilots had packed all their belongings and moved into a new safehouse. They were lucky to move out so quickly because an hour after they left, the OZ troops stormed their old safehouse.  
  
The new safehouse was deeply hidden in the woods. It was small with only three rooms, a small kitchen and a living room. Trowa and Quatre quickly claimed the master bedroom, leaving Wufei, Duo and Heero to decide who was going to get a room by themselves. Finally after an hour of arguing without any result, they decided to pull straws. Whoever got the shortest one would have a room by himself.   
  
  
  
Heero ended up with the shortest one and was glad for it. At least he didn't have to endure the American's constant prodding about Usagi and Wufei's justice rants.   
  
"Injustice! Why do I have to be stuck with the braided baka? Yuy, you must have cheated!" Wufei took a threatening step towards Heero.  
  
Of course his action came to an abrupt halt when a gun was pointed at his forehead. He backed away slowly while muttering his protest but he didn't press the issue.   
  
Heero put his gun back in his subspace pocket and walked towards his room. As he walked away he could hear Duo's enthusiastic cry of "Wu-man!" and Wufei's suffering shout of "Injustice!"  
  
The Wing pilot smirked at Wufei's predicament. He knew that although Wufei seemed to hate Duo, he respected him as a warrior but would rather die a painful death than admit it out loud.  
  
He opened the door to his room and saw the room had only a few pieces of furniture. A single bed with a work table and a chair decorated the room. It also had a small closet placed next to the bathroom door. Heero put his laptop on the table and booted it up. As he waited, his thoughts wandered to a certain blue-eyed blonde girl.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
*In OZ base*  
  
"Report!" A smooth and regal voice commanded.  
  
A person shrouded in shadows saluted and started, "The infiltration mission was successful, sir. The pilots didn't suspect me and least of all pilot 01."  
  
"Excellent. Continue with your mission and make them trust you and when they least expect it, we'll strike and claim victory. At last we will have peace!" Treize chuckled. "Dismissed."  
  
The soldier stared back with cold cerulean blue eyes. She saluted and turned to exit the room, long blonde hair swished behind her as she walked.  
  
"This is turning out better than I thought," the OZ leader mused to himself after the girl was out of the hearing range. "Imagine that pilot 01's lover would betray him and rejoin OZ. Hmm...I still have to watch out for her. If she betrays someone she loved so easily there is no telling that she will not betray me."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
*Back at the safehouse*  
  
The pilots were having dinner and Heero remained silent throughout the meal. He didn't even react to Duo who was pestering him with questions about his love life. The Japanese boy also noticed the looks that Quatre, Trowa and Wufei were giving him but he ignored them all.  
  
Finally Duo got frustrated. "Heee-rooo!" he whined. "I'll get Relena to come over and question you. I'm sure she would _love_ to hear about her competition."  
  
That got him a reaction from the stoic boy but not a reaction he wanted.  
  
Heero stiffened and got this murderous look on his face. His gun hand was twitching madly. With the iciest tone that could have frozen a lava he said, "You have one minute."  
  
The underlying danger laced in those words didn't escape the American. Duo tore out of the house screaming, "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"  
  
The three remaining pilots shifted nervously in their seat as Heero directed his glare at them, daring them to say anything.  
  
"Uh...I'm done. Let's go, Trowa," Quatre jumped out of his seat and quickly vacated the area, tugging his boyfriend along.  
  
Feeling uncomfortable being alone in the room with an angry Heero, Wufei announced that he would be meditating in his room and made a quick exit.  
  
Alone in the dining room, Heero decided to go back to his room and find out if there was a mission. When he opened the door, however, he got a pleasant surprise.  
  
"Usa-chan!" Heero remained standing in the doorway, staring at the petite blonde who was currently lying on his bed. She was wearing a black bodysuit which hugged her body tightly and left no room for imagination. Heero could do nothing except gape at her.  
  
"Miss me, Hee-kun?" Usagi replied with humour in her cerulean eyes. Heero was glad to see that the previous coldness had disappeared from her eyes, leaving them warm and caring once more.  
  
*End Chap 5*  
  
AN: Whoooo! Can you guess what's happening next? Thank you for the reviews! I'm really glad you all really like my fic. Sorry but I don't have time to reply to the reviews now but I will in the next chapter. 


	6. Living In This Moment Forever

Could It Be Any Harder  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own these characters  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Chapter 6: Living In This Moment Forever  
  
Heero snapped out of his stupor and closed the door quickly, locking it. He didn't need the other pilots to barge in his room and find him with her on his bed, in that bodysuit. He would never live it down.  
  
  
  
"What are you doing here, Usa-chan?" he strode over to her and sat down at the edge of the bed.  
  
Usagi put on a mock hurt look. "Do I need a reason to visit my boyfriend?"  
  
Heero sighed. Absently he recalled that he had been doing it a lot lately. "You know I don't mean that, Usa-chan." He shifted and pulled her into his arms.  
  
The blonde snuggled deeper to his chest and giggled slightly. "I know, Hee-kun. I was just teasing you."  
  
"Hn," Heero grunted in reply and buried his face in her soft hair. It smelled of apples and peaches. For one moment he forgot all about his worries and the war. All that existed was the two of them.  
  
"I have something important to tell you," Usagi said, her tone suddenly serious. Heero gazed at her and saw her troubled expression.  
  
"What is it?" he inquired softly.  
  
"Don't take the upcoming mission."  
  
Heero pulled back from her in surprise. "What?"  
  
"I'm serious, Heero. Don't take the upcoming mission." Heero noticed that she called him 'Heero' instead of 'Hee-kun' which meant the situation was grave.  
  
"But why? Usa-chan, you know full well that I can't do that," he stared at her, not understanding. A part of him wondered how she knew about the mission since he hadn't received one yet, but he filed that thought for later assessment.  
  
"It's a trap. I don't want you to get hurt or worse, killed. I don't think I can handle living without you again." Usagi looked down at her hands. Heero knew that she was still hurting from the time he left her behind.  
  
He cupped her cheeks and made her face him. "Usa-chan, this is war and you know the risks I have to take. I can't promise you that I'll make it through this alive but I will try my hardest. That I promise you."  
  
Usagi closed her eyes and her tears made their way down her face. "I understand," she whispered.  
  
/Damn, I hurt her again. I'm sorry, Usa-chan. You deserve much better than me but I can't seem to let you go although it's selfish of me,/ Heero mentally berated himself. He placed a soft kiss on the corner of her eyes where her tears started and made his way down her face, placing butterfly kisses along the trail of tears. He brushed his lips lightly across hers and felt her open her mouth. Taking the silent invitation he delved his tongue into her warm and moist cavern, sucking and licking it hungrily. He pulled away when the need for oxygen threatened to expand beyond a mildly unpleasant burn. Both of them panted trying to pump air into their lungs.  
  
"Usa-chan," Heero broke the silence. When the blonde girl looked up at him, he continued, "I know I have no right to ask this of you but I want you to promise me you will never put yourself in danger."  
  
"I understand, Hee-kun, and I promise."  
  
The quick acceptance made Heero blink in wonder. He thought he saw something flashed in her eyes when she accepted but he attributed it to his fatigue. He hadn't been getting enough sleep lately, worried about the girl in his arms.  
  
"I better be going now, Hee-kun. I'm sure you don't want your friends to see you like this." Usagi gently pulled away from him and Heero reluctantly let her go.  
  
Before he let her leave, however, he had one last question for her. "How did you find this safehouse? We just moved in this morning."  
  
Usagi didn't reply. She gave him a searing kiss before jumping out of the window and into the darkened woods. The last Heero saw of her was a flash of yellow hair before it too disappeared into the darkness.  
  
Deciding that it was enough excitement for him in one day, he went and lie in his bed. His thoughts were troubled and he didn't find sleep until the break of dawn when he finally passed out from exhaustion.  
  
It felt to him that he had only slept for a second and he was still feeling tired. He was awoken by something but his sleep fogged mind couldn't process anything. One prussian blue eye opened blearily and met a pair of amused violet eyes.  
  
That caused the Japanese teen's eyes to fly open in surprise before he started growling at the laughing braided boy.  
  
"Ha ha ha! You should've seen the look on your face. It was priceless. Who would've guessed that the Perfect Soldier is sleeping in. Ha ha ha!"  
  
Heero glared at his soon to be dead best friend. /How the hell did he get in? Didn't I lock the door?/ In his tired state of mind he had forgotten that Duo used to be a thief and therefore he was the expert in stealth and opening any type of locks.  
  
"Duo," Heero grated out.  
  
The braided boy stopped laughing at his tone and gulped nervously. "Yes, Heero?"  
  
"Get. Out. Now."  
  
Duo backed away slowly from the fuming boy and scrambled to get out of the door. "Uh, I just wanna tell you that-" he gulped when he saw the look the other boy was giving him. "Quatresaidbreakfastisready," he blurted out in a rush before running out of the room.  
  
Heero sat on his bed, blinking while trying to decipher the American's rushed speech. When he finally figured it out he stood up and went to the bathroom. He glanced at the clock and saw it was half past eight. /Great, I slept in. The others are going to have a field day with this/.  
  
*End Chap 6*  
  
AN: Sorry for not updating sooner but I've been busy with school again. Anyway this is my last week of school then I have a two week break which means I can write more fics. Hopefully I'll get around to updating my other neglected fics too. Thank you for all those who reviewed and those who didn't please leave a note or two. It's not that hard.  
  
Replies to reviews:  
  
'Usagi Serenity Yui Cosmos' - Usa is not a sailor scout. Sorry I should have mentioned that this is an AU therefore there are no sailor scouts and the other scouts won't be in this story but if I have a lot of demand for them then I might give them a small part in this story. Thank you for joining my group.  
  
'Jupiter Angel' - I completely agree. Silent Waltz is one of the best story around. I can't believe Hikari-chan left it at a cliffhanger like that. I keep pestering her to finish the story. As I said before the other scouts won't be in this fic but if there's a lot of demand for them then I might consider giving them a small part.  
  
'oracale' - Thanks for the suggestion. I'll keep it in mind.  
  
'Moon Dreamer' - That's okay. I'm glad you joined ^_^ but I don't know about longer chapter since I'm really busy with school. Sorry, I know it's a bit confusing right now but it'll be clearer later. I promise.  
  
'MarsMoonStar' - It's cool ^_^ and yes I do know what you mean. Thanks!  
  
'spacecase' - Wai! I'm glad. This means you like every chapter then?  
  
'Rubii Kimu-chan' - I don't like Usa being potrayed as a weak helpless woman either. The Usa I like will be able to kick Heero's butt anytime.  
  
'DragonGirl' - Hehehe...Can't you guess?  
  
'sailorruss' - Okaaaayyyyy.....^_^;;;  
  
'serena-bunny-hime' - Sorry but I can't tell you yet. It'll ruin the story.  
  
'Dark Knight' - Ah...Sorry but I can't answer your questions yet since they'll ruin the story. I guess you have to wait. ^_^  
  
'Falconess', 'Pyro-Girl', 'Ishtar', 'kimeno-pebols', 'DragonGirl', 'obsessed' - Thank you all for reviewing. I'm glad you all liked the story. I'm so happy ^_^ 


	7. Breakfast Surprise

Could It Be Any Harder  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own these characters  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Chapter 7: Breakfast Surprise?  
  
After taking a brief shower, Heero became more aware of his surroundings. He went to the kitchen and saw all the pilots assembled there. Duo and Wufei were sitting on the table while Quatre was cooking something with Trowa's help.  
  
"Good morning, Heero," Quatre smiled, pausing momentarily from his cooking.  
  
"Heero," Trowa nodded at him in acknowledgement.  
  
"Yuy," Wufei gave him a nod.  
  
"Morning, Hee-chan!" Duo enthusiastically greeted him, forgetting that his life was in danger not long ago.  
  
"Hn," Heero grunted in reply and took a seat beside the Chinese teen. He nodded in thanks as Quatre placed a cup of coffee in front of him. He drained the cup and felt more alert than before, the shower had helped but it wasn't enough.  
  
"So Hee-chan, why did you sleep in? Been busy at night?" Duo winked suggestively. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do."  
  
"That means I can pretty much do anything then," Heero retorted. If the braided idiot wanted to play, then he'll play...for now.  
  
Wufei snorted. "He got you there, Maxwell," he told the gaping Duo. Quatre tried not to laugh at his friend but a few quiet chuckles escaped him. Trowa didn't even bother to hide his amusement, he was openly smirking at the American.  
  
Before Duo could say anything, however, Heero's laptop made a beeping sound. The owner stood up and headed to his room. He opened his laptop and saw a mission for all of them from Dr. J. Something nagged him in the back of his mind as he read over the mission but he couldn't tell what the feeling was.  
  
He went back to the kitchen to inform the others. The sight that greeted his eyes almost gave him a heart attack.  
  
"Ohayo, Hee-kun!" the blonde girl cheerfully greeted him. She was sitting down and eating breakfast calmly, unmindful of the guns pointed at her.  
  
"Usa-chan," he stated in surprised. Then he looked at the others, "Put your guns away." He ignored the shocked look directed at him and concentrated instead on the girl sitting in front of him. From the corner of his eyes, he saw that they hesitantly put their guns away and placed them where they could be accessed easily.  
  
"Usa-chan, what are you doing here?" his tone suggested that it had better be a damn good reason.  
  
Usagi pouted. "Didn't we go over this last night, Hee-kun?"  
  
Somewhere in the background, Duo choked but nobody paid any attention to him.  
  
Heero sighed, feeling an incoming headache. "Usa-chan, you know I don't like surprises and I don't think my friends like surprises either, judging from the guns pointed at you."  
  
"Details, details," Usagi replied carelessly before turning serious. "I mean what I said last night. Don't take the mission."  
  
"What does she mean by mission? Heero?" Quatre spoke up, unable to stay silent anymore.  
  
Heero flicked his eyes towards his friends for a split second but didn't answer the question. "We've been over this already, Usa-chan."  
  
This time it was Usagi's turn to sigh. "You are too stubborn for your own good," she mumbled. "I suppose I can't do anything to make you change your mind then. Please be careful," she directed her last sentence to all of them, not just Heero.  
  
"Whoa, back up here. You tried to kill us yesterday and now you're telling us to be careful?" Duo frowned in confusion. "Am I missing something here?"  
  
This time Usagi and Heero both turned their attention towards him. When Heero made no move to explain, the girl gave him a quick jab on his ribs. "Hee-kun, I thought I told you to send my apology to them."  
  
Heero was about to grunt in reply but decided against it when he saw the glare his girlfriend was giving him. "Gomen, Usa-chan. I was busy at the time and forgot about it." He looked calm on the outside but inside he was panicking since he noticed the strange look his friends were giving him at his uncharacteristic behaviour. He didn't want to explain to them how much the blonde girl had changed him. Not yet anyway.  
  
The small girl only gave him a long suffering look before turning back to the other pilots. "Well, since Hee-kun had conveniently forgotton I'll just do it myself then. I'm really sorry for shooting you yesterday. Nothing personal you understand."  
  
"That's okay, Miss-?" Quatre responded, seeing that the others were not going to say anything.  
  
"Usagi. Usagi Tsukino. Pleased to meet you, Quatre."  
  
Quatre started. "How did you-?"  
  
"-Know your name? I did a little bit of research on the gundam pilots. I believe you all are already informed that OZ knows your identities otherwise you wouldn't have moved so quickly. It was a simple matter of accessing their files and extracting the information from the database."  
  
"Why should we trust you?" Trowa asked suspiciously.  
  
Usagi turned an amused look at him. "Heero trusts me. Isn't that enough? Don't worry I'm not a threat to you. I'm here to inform you that the mission that Heero is about to tell you is a trap. Since I can't dissuade Heero from taking the mission, I want to tell you to exercise extreme caution or you'll end up in an unpleasant situation."  
  
"Now that I'm finished telling you all of this, I have to go. It was nice meeting you, Quatre, Duo, Trowa, Wufei. Later, Hee-kun," she finished by planting a quick kiss on the Japanese boy's cheek. She strolled out the door casually. None of the pilots tried to stop her.  
  
"Heero, explain what the hell just happen here," Duo's voice finally broke the silence surrounding them.  
  
The aforementioned boy didn't feel like explaining anything so he settled with "Later, Duo. We have a mission." Then he proceeded to outline the mission to the others. It seemed simple enough. Break in, grab the file containing the pilots' data then destroy the base completely to erase any traces but Heero couldn't help thinking about his girlfriend's warning. He trusted her but he kept getting an uneasy feeling around her and he learnt long ago not to ignore his instincts if he wanted to live. She appeared to be the normal girl he had known but something was off about her and Heero couldn't figure out what it was. It was driving him slowly insane.  
  
"Yo, Heero! Are you listening to me?" Heero would have jumped if he was not the Perfect Soldier. Duo was a mere two inches from him and was waving his hand in front of his eyes.  
  
Heero grunted and shoved the American boy away, glaring at him all the while.  
  
"Heeeerrrooo!" the violet eyed youth whined. "Aren't you going to tell us anything?"  
  
"No." With that Heero stalked back to his room, leaving one irate Shinigami and three confused pilots.  
  
*End Chap 7*  
  
Japanese translations:  
  
Gomen - sorry  
  
AN: I'm really sorry for the lack of updates but real life has been a pain. It's not really surprising since it is my last year of school. I just want to warn you that it might take me a while to do the next update since I don't really have time to write anymore but have no fear I will definitely finish every fic I have written. Thank you for those who reviewed. I appreciate every single comment and cherish it. So for those who never reviewed, please do. I'd like to know your opinion of my fic.  
  
Replies to reviews:  
  
'spacecase' - I'm so happy! ^_~  
  
'Usagi Serenity Yui Cosmos' - I don't know because I've already planned everything and none of the scouts are in it. And if I put them in they'll only have a very minor part in this.  
  
'DemonKiala' - You know I never thought about it but I suppose *sweatdrops*  
  
'MarsMoonStar' - *grins* lack of better word is right! Thanks!  
  
'Pyro-Girl' - Remember that OZ has the pilots under surveillance so it's a simple matter for Usagi to find the safehouse.  
  
'obsessed', 'kimeno-pebols' - Thank you for the reviews! 


	8. Battlefield

Could It Be Any Harder  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own these characters  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Chapter 8: Battlefield  
  
*Later that night*  
  
Heero finally came out of his room after locking himself inside for hours. "We're leaving soon," were the only words he spoke.   
  
The others nodded. They were ready. They went to retrieve their Gundams which they hid in the woods, not too far from the house.   
  
However, before Heero climbed into Wing, Quatre stopped him. His aquamarine eyes were serious as he looked at his friend. "Heero, I need to tell you something."  
  
When the Japanese pilot nodded, he continued, "I know that you love her very much. I can feel it. This is why I am telling you to be careful with her. My uchuu no kokoro is telling me that she is hiding something from you. Something important. I know you don't want to believe it but she might be the enemy. You have to be very cautious. Trust your instincts, Heero."   
  
With that he climbed into Sandrock and after a while Heero climbed into Wing. Many thoughts were racing through his head and every single one revolved around a certain blonde haired girl.   
  
"Yeah, Shinigami is ready for action!" Duo's image popped up in front of Heero as the braided boy grinned maniacally. It seemed that the braided pilot was happy to have some action after being cooped up in their safehouse and Quatre's mansion.  
  
"02 and 03 will come with me to retrieve the data. 04 and 05 will keep guard," Heero ordered. He saw the images of his comrades nodding to his words. They were slowly approaching the base but there were no mobile dolls around. The base seemed empty and he remembered Usagi's words about this mission being a trap.  
  
When the Gundams were in front of the base, a swarm of mobile dolls appeared surrounding them without any means of escape.  
  
"Shit! We're surrounded," Duo cursed as he blasted a bunch of mobile dolls into oblivion.  
  
"Thank you, Mr. Obvious," came Wufei's sarcastic reply.  
  
"Shut up, 05," Duo gritted his teeth as his Gundam was blasted from all the sides. "What do we do now, 01?"  
  
Heero didn't reply he just kept destroying all the mobile dolls that came in his way. /'Kuso, she was right. This is a trap. Every mobile doll that we destroy, twenty more take its place. I have no other choice. This way the others will have a chance to escape./  
  
"All of you get out of my way now," Heero commanded.  
  
"What are you planning, 01?" Duo asked but complied with the order. He saw the others except Wufei did the same.  
  
"I'm going to open a path and then I want everyone to retreat." Heero started powering up Wing's beam cannon.  
  
"Injustice! Retreat is for cowards," Wufei protested.  
  
"Do as I say," Heero growled. He didn't have time to put up with Wufei's rants. Knowing that the Chinese pilot would not back down he elaborated, "If we're all captured, the mission will not be completed."  
  
"05, do as 01 says," Trowa spoke up. "He's right. It wouldn't be any good if all of us were captured."  
  
Wufei grumbled some more but he complied with the order.  
  
The beam cannon stopped powering up. Heero aimed the cannon towards a group of mobile dolls and let off the blast.   
  
KABOOOOOMM!  
  
Everything in the path of the blast was reduced to rubble.  
  
"Everyone move out now!" Heero shouted when he saw more mobile dolls coming towards them.  
  
"What about you, 01?" Duo asked over the com.  
  
"Leave me," came the succinct reply.  
  
"But-" the Deathsycthe pilot tried to protest.  
  
"There is no time. Leave. Now!" Heero cut off Duo's speech as he tried to hold back the incoming mobile dolls.  
  
All of the Gundams except for Wing blasted off to safety. Soon Heero's Gundam was surrounded from all sides and he did not have enough amunition to fight back. He reached for the self destruct button but before he could press it, his Gundam was hit from behind and the impact managed to knock the Japanese pilot out.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
*Hours later*  
  
Heero woke up in a dark cell. His head throbbed painfully and so did some other parts of his body. He tried to move his hands but found them shackled to the wall above his head, leaving him in an upright standing position. He tested his bonds but found he was too weak to break out of them and the headache was getting worse. He settled to examine the cell he was in for any possible escape.  
  
From all he could see the cell was empty except for the chains spread across the place. There was a ventilation shaft but it was too small for him to go through. That didn't leave him many options. He noted, however, the lack of security cameras in the room.  
  
The prussian eyed pilot was cut off from his musings and tensed when the sound footsteps outside his cell reached his ears. The door to his cell opened and Heero winced as the harsh glare of the light outside poured into the dark room.  
  
"Look what we have here. Pilot 01, or known as Heero Yuy, I presume?" an aristocratic voice spoke.  
  
Heero looked closely at his captor. With a handsome and refined features of his face and neatly styled reddish brown hair, he could not be mistaken for anything less than a nobleman. His elegantly split eyebrows which had become one of his trademark clued Heero to his identity. "Treize," he replied with no inflection in his voice.  
  
Treize chuckled. "My, my, what a bright young man you are. OZ could use a talented pilot like you."  
  
Heero made no reply. He only stared at his captor impassively. His face not betraying what he felt inside.  
  
"Not in the mood to talk, I see," Treize chuckled again. "I have a proposal for you, Mr. Yuy. I suggest you co-operate and answer a few questions because I guarantee you would not like the alternative."  
  
Heero remained silent, not even bothering to acknowledge Treize's words.  
  
"Very well," Treize finally said after a few minutes of total silence. "Maybe my soldiers can put you in a more....agreeable mood."  
  
With that the General walked out of the cell. A couple of burly soldiers took his place.  
  
*End Chap 8*  
  
Japanese translations:  
  
Kuso - damn  
  
AN: Whew! Finally done. Sorry guys. I meant to have this chapter out sooner but RL has been getting in the way. Anyway I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope I can get the next chapter out sooner. Remember all comments and critism appreciated as long as they are constructive.   
  
Reply to reviews:  
  
'Usagi Serenity Yui Cosmos' - *grins* Wouldn't you like to know. I just love making people guess which side she is on.  
  
'MooCow' - *sweatdrops* my condolences to you, Hermen and as for MooCow I do fear the marshmallows ^_^;;  
  
'sailorruss' - Bwahahaha! Chaos, chaos and more chaos! Isn't this fun?  
  
'obsessed' - Thank you. I have so many assignments to complete that I'm starting to do my homework in my dreams *shudder*  
  
'spacecase' - Glad I can make you happy ^_^  
  
'piukka' - Originally I planned this as an Usagi solo fic but who knows? I might make the others appear for a surprise appearance later.  
  
'angel' - Thanks! I'm happy you like my fic.  
  
'Pyro-Girl' - Sorry I don't think I can manage longer chapters right now. I'm having trouble coming out with short chapter and if I write longer ones, they probably will never come out ^_^;;;  
  
'Random-chan' - Whoa! That has to be my longest review ever. Thank you for your suggestions and I'll keep them in mind as I write this fic. As for Usagi, I know she changed dramatically. I hope I can try and explain that in later chapters. I like the idea of a prequel though. Thanks for suggestin that. I might start on it when I finish this fic and I hope it will explain Usagi's change of attitude. *grins* Thank you for giving me so many wonderful ideas. I really appreciate it and I hope you will be able to give me further suggestions. 


	9. Breakout

Could It Be Any Harder  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own these characters  
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Chapter 9: Breakout  
  
"We'll have lots of fun, won't we, pretty boy? Let's get to know each other first. I'm Johnson," one of the soldiers with brown eyes and black hair said.  
  
His partner, with dirty blonde hair and green eyes, cracked his knuckles and grinned nastily. "And I'm Jacob. What about you, pretty boy?"  
  
But Heero didn't even look at them. This seems to infuriate the two soldiers.  
  
Heero saw the punch coming but was powerless to stop it. His head was flung to one side as the blow met his cheek. Another embedded itself in his stomach, making him lose his breath. The beating went on for a while but the pilot of Wing never uttered a sound. While he soldiers were occupied with their 'interrogation' he never stopped trying to free himself but he must be still weakened since he couldn't break the shackles.  
  
Suddenly a hand grabbed his hair and jerked his head upward. He was met with the ugly face of Johnson. His putrid breath threatened to suffocate Heero but still his face remained emotionless as with his eyes.  
  
Before Johnson could say or do anything however a female voice interjected. "What is the meaning of this, soldier?"  
  
Johnson released Heero. He and Jacob turned to look towards the door. Standing there was Usagi and she didn't look impressed.  
  
"The General ordered us to interrogate the prisoner, Ma'am," Jacob replied.  
  
"This doesn't look like an interrogation. I'm sure the General won't be happy knowing you killed the prisoner by your 'interrogation'. Both of you, leave," Usagi commanded. Her eyes were staring at them coldly.  
  
"But-"  
  
"That is a direct order, soldier!" her voice was like a whip.  
  
"Yes, Ma'am!" Both of the soldiers saluted and left the cell.  
  
Usagi watched them leave and didn't move until the soldiers were out of sight. She slowly closed the door, leaving a tiny opening to let some light through. Then her eyes became worried as she turned to Heero's battered and bruised body. She quickly examined him for any serious injuries.   
  
"Nothing is broken, but probably bruised," she reported as she sighed in relief then she looked at him. "You should have heeded my warning."  
  
Heero grunted. "Do you mind unlocking these? They're not exactly suited for comfort you know."  
  
Usagi smiled at last, acknowledging his attempt at making a joke. Heero winced internally. Had she changed him so much that he was actually attempting a joke? Just the mere thought of it was so strange, almost alien.  
  
His girlfriend's eyes twinkled mischievously and purred, "I don't know, Hee-chan. I think I like seeing you in that position."  
  
"Usa-chan," Heero growled. His arms were aching and his headache was starting to return. Suffice to say he was not in the mood for her teasing.  
  
Usagi pouted. "Oh alright. You're no fun, Hee-chan," she grumbled but took out her keys and unlocked the shackles on his wrists.  
  
"Thanks," Heero muttered when he was released. He rubbed his wrists gingerly. They were a bit raw from his attempt to free himself.  
  
The blonde girl glared at him. "Is that all?"  
  
Without any warning Heero grabbed Usagi by the waist and planted a deep kiss on her lips. She was surprised but soon surrendered herself to his assault.  
  
When they parted Usagi's face was flushed and she was breathing heavily while the Japanese pilot was openly smirking.  
  
"That," she breathed out. "Was a dirty trick, Heero Yuy."  
  
"I don't hear you complaining."  
  
"What makes you think I'm complaining?"  
  
Before Heero could reply, however, he heard footsteps coming towards the cell and from the look on Usagi's face, it seemed she had heard the same thing.  
  
"Follow me," Usagi hissed and she made her way to the door. She peeked out slowly and grabbed her gun. She looked at Heero and a silent communication passed between them. Heero nodded grabbing his gun from wherever it came from.  
  
Usagi noticed and muttered under her breath, "Of course." Suddenly she threw the door open and fired rapidly at the incoming guards. They didn't even have the chance to look surprised before they died.  
  
"Hurry," Usagi whipered to Heero who was standing behind her. She started running to the right and Heero followed her without question although his danger sense was screaming at him.  
  
They ran through the hallway and down the stairs. It wasn't long before they reached the exit. The one thing that was bothering Heero was the lack of guards and also alarms. Surely OZ would have cameras all over the place and they should have been spotted when they started running but strangely no alarms went off. He tried not to think about it but he couldn't shake off the bad feeling.  
  
Suddenly Usagi stopped, bringing Heero to an abrupt halt. "I heard something."  
  
Heero tried to listen for any unusual sounds when he saw the bushes next to him rustle and a figure came out of the bushes. Heero quickly aimed his gun at the intruder but lowered it when he recognised his partner, Duo Maxwell.  
  
"Hey, buddy! How the hell did you get out? We were coming to rescue you," Duo said cheerfully, the other two pilots standing behind him.  
  
"Hn."  
  
"As talkative as always, I see," Duo said sarcastically. He was about to say something else but Quatre beat him to it.  
  
"Heero! Thank Allah, you're safe! Are you okay?" the blonde pilot moved towards his Japanese friend but Heero stopped him with a gesture.  
  
"I'm fine. The injuries are very minor." Heero flicked a quick look at his girlfriend who was oddly quiet.  
  
The other pilots finally noticed her presence.  
  
"Usagi-san. It's nice to meet you again," Quatre said, trying to be polite but Usagi didn't reply.  
  
"Heero, what is _she_ doing here?" Duo demanded. He looked at her suspiciously then turned to Heero.  
  
The other pilots were also wary of her. Heero could see it in their eyes and truthfully his trust in her was starting to waver but he tried not to linger in those thoughts. Afterall, she did save him, didn't she?  
  
"She got me out," Heero replied to Duo's question. "Where did you hide the Gundams?"  
  
Trowa glanced quickly at Usagi and then tilted his head, silently asking if she could be trusted.  
  
Heero nodded slightly. He hoped he was not wrong in his judgement.  
  
"They're hidden not far from here. What about Wing?" Trowa finally said. Heero could see the tall pilot still didn't trust the girl.  
  
"I know where Wing is," Usagi spoke for the first time since the other pilots arrived.  
  
Everyone turned their eyes on her but the girl didn't seem to notice. Her attention was on Heero.  
  
"I can show you where it is," Usagi offered. She looked rather pale and Heero could see tension running through her body.  
  
Heero said nothing for a while. He was weighing the option in his mind. On one hand he really wanted to trust his girlfriend whom he had known for a long time but on the other hand he knew that she was no longer the person he used to know therefore he wasn't sure if he could still trust her.  
  
From the corner of his eyes, he saw Usagi started to shiver. Concern replaced all thoughts in his head. "Usa-chan?"  
  
*End Chap 9*  
  
AN: I'm really, really, really sorry for the lack of updates. I won't make any excuses but I feel bad for neglecting my fics. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.  
  
'Josie-chan' - To answer your question: Usagi is not Sailor Moon. This is an AU so there won't be any sailor scouts. Thanks for telling me that. I'll put up a warning to say this fic is an AU ^_^  
  
'dark_rhapsody' - I really should put up a warning that this story is an AU at least for SM. I'll try to put up translation for the Japanese words and I'll try to limit them. As for Usagi's past/present, once I finish this fic I'm thinking to write a side-story for Usagi. But first I have to finish this story ^_^;;;  
  
For all those who reviewed: Thank you very much. Your reviews are what prompted me to start writing again. I've almost given up but when I read your reviews I had to continue so thank you for your support. 


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